River Rat

The only good news out of this story is that two of the alleged perpetrators were caught by the staff of the Nature Reserve one still at large. This supports what we have suspected for sometime that the problem is related to an ineffective management.

Ok so the rules say that a bike has to have two wheels plus the frame so there where at least three DNFs in the Juniors, seems a pity but I guess they should know the rules. Take it as a lesson learned!

Who is going to rule on the no wheels run with the bike by Andrew Sparks, I'd give it to the youngster!

How are those conditions?

This is simply awesome thanks!

One of the factories that was under my control is based in Newcastle, KZN where the air pollution was pretty bad thanks to the steel mill. This factory had double the amount of sick absentees during winter compared to our other operations. We had an on site clinic as we one does with over 500 employees and we offered free flu vaccines. The result was that of those that took the shot only 1% booked off for the flu versus the 75% that did not take the shot. We rolled this out to our other 14 operations with similar results I'm not sure if this has continued since I left but at one stage close to 2000 people were taking the flu shot every March just over 50% of our staff compliment. Comparisons with the rest of the industry showed that we were more than 50% below the norm. I have no doubt as to its efficacy.

Totally sober, just checked the number on the bike and I would be quite chuffed if I was Pablo. I'd be unplayable showing my mates my Epic video. Sort of makes up for the fact he did not finish.

That's not Greg Minnaar it's Pablo Rodriquez of Argentina must say he looks and rides like Greg!

Okay more related to canoeing but still a scene that makes you want to be outdoors, this is last night's moon rising as we finished the club time trial.

We have been working with the ward Councillor to arrange a meeting with the MMC (Member of the Municipal Council) so that we can discuss what they're doing to make GK safe. Whilst we have made great progress in terms of making Klapperkop safer the surrounding areas have been badly affected by crime (perhaps a case of cause and effect?). Our concern is that as less and less people frequent GK the criminals will move back to KK. Unfortunately the polite way of asking for the attention of the politicians is proving to be less than successful as we keep being told that they are launching their manifestos for the upcoming elections or some other election related excuse. This morning I sent an email to the ward Councillor telling him that this latest attack is proof that we cannot wait for them and I will be putting together a petition to be followed up by protest. Hopefully I can get your support otherwise my efforts will amount to a lone voice squeaking in the dark!

First some good news it’s quite pleasing to report that we have no reported incidents in the Klapperkop reserve since August last year which suggests that the efforts of the community, The Friends of Groenkloof Nature Reserve (FGNR), the Community Policing Forum (CPF) and last but not least Hi Risk Security Unit are paying dividends. However, I need to emphasise the word reported as there are unconfirmed rumours of a bike jacking in the reserve during December last yea,r I have tried to get details but without success. The only definitive statement I can make is that if, it did occur it was not reported at the relevant police station, which sadly is the case with many of the incidents. I appeal to anyone who might be on the wrong side of an incident, please take the time (and I know it to be one of the most painstaking exercises) to report it. The reason for this is that SAPS runs on statistics so, if a specific area has a certain number of incidents then SAPS allocate resources to that area. I also know that the SAPS reporting procedure feels like it’s designed to make reporting difficult perhaps to reduce the negative stats. Now for some bad news there were two attacks on cyclists over the past 6 months that occurred on the periphery of the reserve, one on the R21 and the other on George Storrar drive both close to the fountains circle. The good news is that the cyclist that was attacked on the R21 through his own efforts and with the assistance of the Brooklyn Police (who are currently out performing Sunnyside Police by some margin) caught the alleged perpetrators who are now awaiting trial for attempted murder. This was a particularly brave move on behalf of the cyclist who while convalescing having been stabbed several times took it upon himself to question the vendors selling their wares at fountains circle to see if the saw anything. It was their information and the persistence of the cyclist to take the investigating officer to the area to get the alleged perpetrators arrested. Unfortunately the news regarding Groenkloof is not positive at all with numerous attacks on cyclists and hikers being reported. The most recent was indeed one of the guys on our WhatsApp group and he used this medium to get Hi Risk to respond and to their credit they were there in minutes unfortunately not quick enough to catch the perpetrators as they made off with his brand new Carbon Cannondale (the full report of the incident is on FGNR’s facebook page) escaping into the squatter camp below Unisa. It is important to note that these incidents are occurring in the northern triangle of the Groenkloof reserve and if you do ride in Groenkloof I suggest you avoid riding in this section of the park. Based on the Councils poor response to the above incident and their intransigence regarding some of the suggestions made to make Groenkloof safer I would go further in suggesting that you should avoid Groenkloof all together. This feels like we are giving up on Groenkloof, this is not the case as we can do something but we need the council to work with us and I guess things will have to get worse before we get their attention. In the meantime statistics would suggest that Klapperkop is the safer option and it’s free with great trails. I have noticed that there is increased activity in Klapperkop with a few people still cycling on their own and I urge you to make use of the WhatsApp group to coordinate your rides with other users. The WhatsApp number is 072 136 2911 otherwise drop me a PM to get you on to the group, you will be subjected to a security check of sorts. Further to keep Klapperkop safe we need to up our efforts which will require funding and if you can make a donation please go to http://naturefriends.org.za/groenkloof/ where you’ll find the banking details. We have some ideas on fund raising that I will share with you in due course. Please be safe out there.

If the riders accounts are anything to go by it seems like the route marking problem was an organisational issue rather than rider fault. As a prospective rider I would prefer to see the organisers admitting that they got it wrong and are taking measures to ensure that it doesn't happen again. This sort of spin does nothing for their credibility. Come on chaps step up to the plate and let's move forward!

Long term (+ 5 years) I would punt the SATRIX Resi now and in a years time depending on whether we hit an inflation level of above 6% I would start investing in the Fini. The Swix is the " market " without resources so not bad short term and I would stay away from the DIVI. All at your own risk!

Satrix have a number of products (donated by the letters STX) as for US Equities the DBXUS which tracks the S&P 500.

Not quite as complicated a you might think but it does require an understanding of CFD's (Contracts for a difference) and there are numerous courses that you can attend to help you on your way. Also there a number websites that allow you a demo period to test your knowledge "live".

Taken yesterday at Fort Klapperkop by a member of our Safety WhatsApp group.

Talus it was great to meet you too, I agree Peach is a real star at not only telling you what you should be doing but showing us at the same time. It was also fantastic to see how each of us improved as the morning progressed.

This and perhaps do the first introduction on neutral ground, say at park close by. Another thing there is a reason why female dogs are called bitches as they can be quite moody and the odd snap is possible even if the first introduction is a success. So just be careful.

So my wife says we have a rat problem so we need a cat, meet Batman. I can confirm that the Christmas tree is rat free. Why am I suddenly feeling nervous?

I'll join you for Groenkloof.

Circuit Breaker we ride regularly (+- 4 times per week) in Klapperkop. The latest attacks have occurred outside of Klapperkop but one still has to be careful so we try and ride in groups to help coordinate this we have WhatsApp group and if Klapperkop is a viable training area for you drop me a PM and I'll get you on board. However, if you ride from 6:30 to 8:00 and 16:30 till dark Mon to Fri you are generally safe as there are a lot of cyclists and runners in the reserve. Weekends from 6:30 till 10:00 it's very busy so no problem there either. So be cautious outside of these hours and preferably ride in a group and as Spinnekop has said rather avoid the area after dark.

Bad news indeed. We have been speculating for sometime now that we seem to have pushed the criminals out of Klapperkop and we may have forced them to operate on the perimeter. Whichever way you look at it the root cause remains the squatter camp adjacent to Unisa it was raided in May. I think we need to pressure the authorities to conduct another raid soon.

Awesome use of the search function though!

Rudi you might want to check the date of the original post......

Nice write up, for a great event.